Cadillac Sky - Blind Man Walking

Blind Man Walking, Cadillac Sky's first album on Skaggs Family Records, hits stores tomorrow. Cadillac Sky could primarily be classified as a newgrass band, but the influence of country, traditional bluegrass, and Celtic music can be heard. Banjo player Matt Menefee and fiddler Ross Homes have both placed at Walnut Valley and singer and mandolin player Bryan Simpson has had several songs recorded by mainstream country artists.

Singer Bryan Simpson's baritone splits the difference between recent hat act Josh Turner (with whom they're played) and John Cowan of New Grass Revival and highlights an ambivalence running through this CD toward the divisions between traditional, progressive, and popular.

Listen:
Cadillac Sky - Born Lonesome
Cadillac Sky - You Again

Buy:
From Scaggs Family
From Amazon

The Dewayn Brothers - A Family Farewell

The Dewayn Brothers started out as a side project of Emporia, KS-based jam band Loco Macheen. Playing in a more rock/funk oriented jam style, they decided to branch out into an acoustic, bluegrass style. Their bluegrass doesn't come out all that jam-band-y, though.

The band has a pretty typical bluegrass line-up, but with the addition of an accordion, which gives them a little bit of distinction over all the other side-project bluegrass bands floating around Lawrence.

This is their second CD; I'm not sure if it's available still. Their third and fourth CDs are at CDBaby. Their most recent was produced by Mike West at the old 9th Ward Pickin' Parlor.

Listen:
The Dewayn Brothers - Pigeon Stew/That Train

Buy:
Frontyard Junkyard from CD Baby (3rd CD)
Critter Creole from CD Baby (4th CD)

Bluegrass Doubleshot: Bobby Osborne - Try a Little Kindness & The John Cowan Band - New Tattoo

Today I'm lumping together two solo albums from former members of "progressive" bluegrass bands. Try a Little Kindness by Bobby Osborne of the Osborne Brothers and New Tattoo by John Cowan of New Grass Revival.

I first heard about Bobby Osborne's new album on Living in Stereo, which featured its version of Kris Kristofferson's "Sunday Morning Coming Down" in a comparison of several versions of that song. That song is, I feel, the stand out of the album, but the rest does not disappoint. It features mostly covers and standards from bluegrass and country and beyond, including songs by Bill Monroe and Carter Stanley, Josh Turner and Kristofferson, as well as Paul Simon.

While this isn't a career redefining album, it is a good listen from a musician who could be in Branson.

This album follows pretty closely in the proto-jam band sound of New Grass Revival. While not featuring any extended cuts, the atmosphere is the same and is updated with a touch of that new-agey Celtic sound that was all over in the '90s. Featuring alumni of IIIrd Tyme Out and Leftover Salmon, this album has a bit of a mix of traditional and newgrass sounds. The harmonies, in particular, are of a more traditional nature, in the vein of IIIrd Tyme Out.

Of note on this album is "Drown," a brutal song by John Cowan about his experience of being molested as a child. Certainly a very brave thing to do, to talk in public so frankly about something generally taboo; however, the graphicness of the song sends me too quickly to the skip button. It does raise visibility, though, as does his work as a spokesman for Project Safe Place.

Listen:
Bobby Osborne & The Rocky Top X-Press - The Hard Times
The John Cowan Band - Carla's Got a New Tattoo

Buy:
Try a Little Kindness from Amazon
New Tattoo from Amazon